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| Sunday, 13 February 2005 |
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Ceasefire turns fragile with Kaushalyan killing FromTamil Press by S. Selvakumar LTTE was seriously hurt over the killing of Kaushalyan and diplomatic efforts were being made in the western world to strengthen the ceasefire agreement between the government and the LTTE. The Virakesari on Monday led with the story that certain ministers and deputy ministers were holding secret talks with some UNP parliamentarians in a bid to make them cross over to the government in the face of increasing tension between the two main coalition partners in the UPFA. The paper quoted TNA parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham and said the TNA would boycott a meeting summoned by the President to discuss rehabilitation of tsunami devastated areas. The Thinakkural said in its lead story that Secretary General of the Commonwealth had told Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremasinghe in London not to postpone or delay peace talks with the LTTE in view of the tsunami disaster but to cooperate with the government and expedite peace talks with the LTTE. The Norwegian delegation and the SLMM have conveyed the government's concern to the LTTE on the latter's acquisition of aircraft. All Tamil dailies on Tuesday led with the story on the killing of Batticaloa-Ampara LTTE political wing leader E. Kaushalyan. The Virakesari gave prominence to a Colombo press conference where the representatives of the World Bank, ADB and JICA expressed dissatisfaction on the inability of the government to distribute relief in a proper manner in the LTTE controlled areas. In another story the paper said Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe praised the President and the Foreign Minister at the UNP parliamentary group meeting for wishing him well prior to his departure to europe and also for the assistance he received from Sri Lanka Ambassadors in that country. Security was strengthened in the city following the killing of Kaushalyan, the Thinakkural said. The Thinakaran said that President Kumaratunga has directed the authorities to commence construction of houses from February 20 in Batticaloa, Vakarai and Kattankudy. In another story the paper said Minister Anura Bandaranaike pledged that the JVP and SLFP would never split and he would not allow it to happen under any circumstances. The Sudaroli said representatives of international donor agencies and the UN would meet with the LTTE in Kilinochchi. The Sudaroli on Wednesday led with the story that the LTTE was seriously hurt over the killing of Kaushalyan and added that diplomatic efforts were being made in the western world to strengthen the ceasefire agreement between the government and the LTTE. It also reported the death of former TULF parliamentarian A. Chandranehru who, too, was with Kaushalyan when the shooting occurred in Welikanda on Monday night. LTTE Political Wing Head S. P. Thamilselvan and some top LTTE cadres would fly to Batticaloa to pay their last respects to Kaushalyan, the paper said in another front page story. The Thinakkural said that it was after much tussle between the LTTE and the police that the bodies of Kaushalyan and five others killed along with him were allowed to be taken to the Batticaloa hospital for the post-mortem. Police and Polonnaruwa hospital authorities had said that the bodies should be sent to the Colombo National Hospital and later Parliamentarian Joseph Pararajasingham contacted the IGP, AG and the Polonnaruwa Magistrate and on their intervention the bodies were released to the Batticaloa hospital under heavy armed guards. All Tamil dailies on Thursday led with the story that the entire Eastern Province came to standstill following the killing of Kaushalyan and five others. The Virakesari said Norwegian Ambassador Hans Braatskar expressed his country's concern at a meeting with SLMC leader Rauf Hakeem over the killing of Kaushalyan and whether it would lead to a conflict between the government and the LTTE. All Tamil papers also reported that UN Secretary General Koffi Annan had condemned the killing of Kaushalyan. The Virakesari editorially commented that the LTTE was preoccupied with the tsunami relief efforts and failed to take necessary precautions which made Kaushalyan and others vulnerable to attacks. The Sudaroli gave prominence to the speech by TNA General Secretary R. Sampanthan in parliament where he said Kaushalyan's killing was a well planned conspiracy executed amidst military security. On Friday, all papers reported the funeral of Kaushalyan held at Thandiyadi on Thursday afternoon. President of the private Bus Owners Association, Gemunu Wijeratne has told the Thinakaran that he has sought the help of the LTTE to provide a streamlined bus service in the Jaffna peninsula and requested tax exemption for private bus owners. The Sudaroli led with the oration of Thamilselvan at Kaushalyan's funeral where he had said that the Tigers were on the edge of their tolerance and warned the government not to consider it as a weak point. "We had been tolerating in the face of several acts that made us angry because it our concern for our people" Thamilselvan further said. The Thinakkural quoted Thamilselvan's funeral oration and said UN Secretary General condemnation of the killing of Kaushalyan was an indication that the international community recognised the struggle of the Tamils. The Virakesari quoted Professor G. L. Peiris and said Kaushalyan's killing had pushed the peace process and the ceasefire agreement to a very fragile point and requested the government to probe and find out the elements behind the killings. |
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